In a year that we saw Maersk falling from the top of the rankings of the world's largest container shipping companies, the Danish container carrier achieved strong results with increases in earnings and revenues.
In particular, Maersk totalled over US$81.5 billion in total revenues in 2022, in comparison to US$48.2 billion in 2021. The Copenhagen-based firm also recorded total earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of US$30.8 billion, in comparison to US$19.6 billion in 2021, while its total earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in 2022 reached US$36.8 billion, in contrast to US$24 billion in the previous year.
In the ocean sector, the company delivered the strongest result on record due to the high freight rates and strong demand, particularly in the first half of the year, increasing ocean revenue by 33%. Additionally, in logistics & services sector, Maersk saw revenue grow by 47%, with an organic contribution of 21%.
"The organic revenue growth came primarily from top 200 customers as the business continues to develop integrated solutions to meet end-to-end supply chain needs," noted the company in its statement.
The growth was also particularly strong in warehousing where the footprint more than doubled to 7.1 million m² with the acquisition of LF Logistics alone adding 198 warehouses translating to 3.1 million m².
On the other hand, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) in the terminal business of the company dropped by US$341 million due to the divestment of Global Ports Investments (GPI) in Russia to US$832 million.
For 2023 figures, Maersk sees underlying EBITDA of US$8-11 billion, underlying EBIT of US$2-5 billion, and free cash flow of at least US$2 billion.
"2022 was remarkable in more than one way. While we report the best financial result in the history of the company, we have also taken the partnerships with our customers to a new level by supporting their supply chains end to end during highly disruptive times," commented Vincent Clerc, CEO of A.P. Moller - Maersk.
